Bourbon Cherry Filled Doughnuts.

Doughnuts are my jam. As good as Krispy Kreme doughnuts are (and yes I rack up my fair share of reward points – I just admitted doughnuts are my jam so it should not be a shocker) there’s something special about homemade doughnuts. Working with dough, it’s therapeutic to me. I will never not be amazed with dough. Is it hard? No. Time consuming? Yes. Making doughnuts from scratch takes time.

That glorious dough needs time to work it glutenous magic. This is a great recipe to tackle on the weekends when you have a little more time on your hands. Or you could make the dough the night before (which I actually prefer doing) and then just fry them the following morning once they’ve had a chance to rise again. As a non morning person this is a good thing for me.

This year hasn’t been the easiest for me. If I’m honest, I don’t think any from here forward will be. I’m learning to find MY new normal and I’m trying to get back to that happy place in the kitchen. Where it’s not work , but love. Some days are better than others. Some days it comes back to me without much effort, other days I struggle to want to make anything besides a sandwich. I’m hoping that making things for ME now will help. Recipes that I WANT to make. Not that I HAVE to make. These doughnuts are just that. My Mom loved jelly filled doughnuts. She’d make them with her homemade preserves and they were some of my favorite. I don’t have any more of her preserves left. But I do have my memories and I’m holding onto those life a life jacket. So I’ve taken what I grew up loving and I’ve put a twist on it, because she raised a spirited and strong willed girl who just can’t help herself.

I’ve used my homemade DIY VANILLA SPICED BOURBON with cherry preserves to create the filling. It gives it a little pep and I can use all the pep in my step I can get right now. We’ve also used our DIY VANILLA EXTRACT. Keeping this homemade theme going here. It’s a great time of year to make a new batch with the holidays coming up. You’ll be using it more than ever.

Now back to the dough. The thing about dough is it lets you know what it needs – you just have to pay attention to it. Too sticky? Needs more flour. A little at a time until it gets to the right consistency. Don’t want to be heavy handed here or overwork the dough.

When you’re ready to fry them, start out with just one. Frying can be a little tricky and the first one never comes out just right (at least for me). So instead of ruining multiple doughnuts and crying because I won’t get to eat all my hard work, I check the temperature and adjust if necessary.

If you don’t have piping bags and decorating tips. No worries. You don’t HAVE to any fancy equipment to fill these beauties. You can absolutely use your finger to make the hole (I find it easier actually), place the filling into a zip lock bag and just snip the tip off. Use what you have, it’s my motto.

xo!

 

 

Recipe adapted from Bon Appetit